TOS Book Review for The Conversation

Today, I get to share with you a review for a very informative book. The Conversation by Leigh Bortins from Classical Conversations is an excellent resource for homeschooling parents following the Classical education approach. 

"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."                                                          ~ Theodore Roosevelt 

The Conversation is the follow up book to The Core and The Question. This book completes the trivium trilogy.

The Core~ The Grammar Stage~ Elementary
The Question~ The Logic Stage~ Middle School

The Core~ The Rhetoric Stage~ High School  

Have you ever wondered why so many parents stop homeschooling when their kids reach the high school years? I know for me I see it every year. I can count on one hand the amount of families that continue to homeschool during the high school years.  "Why do so many parents committed to homeschooling their younger children switch their older children into institutions? What shakes their confidence in them selves or in the success of homeschooling?"

The Conversation helps parents who are heading into the high school years. Its focus is for families that follow a classical approach. Mrs. Bortins' goal is to help families find their way through these difficult and challenging years. The high school years can be hard to navigate but they can be filled with a lot of fun too!

"Education is never finished."

The Conversation is split into three sections. They are.... High School at Home The Rhetoric Arts The Appendix The first section, High School at Home, focuses on why so many parents begin to doubt their abilities to homeschool the high school years. Fear, cultural conformity, and lack of confidence are just a few of the reasons she brings to light. As parents, we feel we don't know enough, we didn't do well during our own high schools year, or we just don't feel we have the abilities to teach the upper grades with the proper resources. We start to believe all those negative comments about homeschooling that we have heard over the years. Our poor children will not have all the advantages they need or will miss out on so many opportunists. We forget that all we need for a classical education is pencils, paper, good books, and time for great conversations! In the book, Mrs. Bortins introduces us to Aristotle' s five canons of rhetoric.  Invention Arrangement Elocution Memory Delivery

The second section, The Rhetoric Arts, is the main section of the book. It is the longest section. You will spend a lot of time reading this section and taking it all in. It's filled with so much. Here, she goes through each subject students will learn during high school. She takes each subject and shows parents how to apply the five canons to each subject. She give solid examples and ideas on how to follow a classical education in the high school years. She brings up the importance of studying Latin, debate, and speech. 
The third section, The Appendix, gives a variety of resources for parents. Conversation games, rhetoric devices to use with your student, additional resources, and a section on interviews with real parents. 

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed reading this book. As Michael heads in to the 7th grade, I realize that high school isn't that far off. It's looming right around the corner. I sit here wondering how we got here and where all those years went. Too quickly I tell you. Like many parents, fear had started to creep in. Very few families I know continue on in the high school years. We have watched families slowly put their kids into school as they reach the upper grades. It definitely knocks down your confidence. I loved how, Mrs. Bortins gives parents solid advice and fantastic ideas. She gives parents the knowledge, resources, and confidence to jump in to the high school years. I will going back to this book through out the next few years.

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